The Graves of Shahr-e Sukhteh (the Burnt City)
- themuseumoftime
- Nov 15
- 15 min read
So far, archaeologists have uncovered more than 300 graves in Shahr-e Sukhteh, but here’s the astonishing part: experts believe that beneath the desert ground lie between 25,000 and 40,000 burials still waiting to be unearthed. These graves date back to 3200–1800 BCE, spanning the entire life of the city and reflecting its social, cultural, and spiritual evolution.
The cemetery was first identified by the Italian archaeological mission led by Maurizio Tosi (1967–1978), and later continued by Iranian teams under Dr. Seyyed Mansour Sajjadi. Together, they revealed one of the most extensive Bronze Age cemeteries in the world, a silent record of a civilization that honored its dead with remarkable care and complexity.
Excavations show a wide diversity of burial types, revealing differences in status, gender, family ties, and possibly profession or clan. Most of those buried seemed to believe that life continued after death, and that they would need their belongings in the next world. Coins, pottery, jewelry, mirrors, and tools were placed beside the dead, not merely as decoration, but as offerings for a journey beyond this life.
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The Burial Culture of Shahr-e Sukhteh
Their burial culture was unlike anything seen in neighboring civilizations. In some graves, archaeologists found artificial fruits made of clay, symbolic offerings to accompany the soul into the afterlife. One of the most astonishing discoveries was a woman buried with her artificial eye still in place, the oldest known prosthetic eye in human history.
Unlike many ancient societies where the orientation of the body reflected gender or social order, the people of the Burnt City followed a unique rule: they buried their dead according to the position of the sun. At sunrise or sunset, bodies were placed facing the direction of the light. When burials took place at night, the deceased were laid on their backs, gazing upward. And at noon, when the sun stood high and bright, bodies were buried facing the sky, as if connecting the departed with the heavens above.
Archaeologists have also uncovered crypt-style tombs, chambered graves built of mud-brick. Inside some of these, they discovered small hearths made of clay, designed to burn for as long as oxygen lasted within the sealed chamber. These fires symbolized warmth and life even in death. The entrances of these crypts were sealed tightly, yet always aligned so that the eyes of the deceased faced the doorway, which in turn opened toward the rising sun, a profound gesture of rebirth and light.
The people of Shahr-e Sukhteh placed beside their dead all that was important to them in life, personal belongings, ornaments, tools, and offerings. They truly believed in life after death, and to them, death was not an end but a natural stage in the eternal cycle of existence. Many skeletons discovered appear as if peacefully asleep, not lifeless, but merely resting.
Most graves contained personal objects belonging to the deceased, but some were found empty. Archaeologists propose two explanations: either the objects had decayed over time, or those individuals were travelers who passed through the city and, because of different customs or faiths, were buried without offerings.
So far, around 700 graves have been excavated, and their contents reveal another curious detail, not all women’s graves contained “feminine” objects. Some women were buried with tools, containers, or ornaments usually associated with men. Perhaps these items reflected their passions or personal identity, chosen by loved ones to accompany them into the afterlife.
Simple Pit Graves of shahr-e sukhteh
Among the vast cemetery of Shahr-e Sukhteh, the simple pit graves are by far the most common type, silent, humble, and yet deeply human. These burials form the majority of the thousands of graves scattered across the desert plateau, representing the everyday men, women, and children who once brought life to this ancient city.
Each grave was typically a rectangular or oval pit, dug directly into the earth. The bodies were placed in a flexed or fetal position, arms drawn close to the chest and knees bent, as though the dead were returning to the same position they had once held in the womb. This gesture of rebirth (returning to the earth as one once came from it) reflects a profound spiritual symbolism that the people of the Burnt City clearly understood.
The orientation of these simple graves varied, but most were aligned north–south, with the head turned toward the south or southeast, following the direction of the rising sun. Even in their simplicity, these burials reveal a deep connection to cosmic and natural cycles (the sun, earth, and sky) all intertwined in the city’s belief in life beyond death.
Objects found within these graves were modest but meaningful: clay vessels, stone beads, simple tools, and occasionally small mirrors or personal ornaments. These were not random gifts, but offerings of remembrance and hope, items believed to help the soul in its passage to the next world. Some graves even contained fragments of animal bones or food, symbolic provisions for the afterlife journey.
What is most striking about these pit burials is not their lack of wealth, but their emotional intimacy. Each one tells the story of an ordinary life (a potter, a child, a mother, or a shepherd) laid to rest with care, facing the same sun they once worked and lived beneath. Their graves may be simple, but they speak of a civilization that valued every human soul, regardless of status or power.
Brick-Lined Graves
If the simple pit burials of Shahr-e Sukhteh belonged to the ordinary people of the city, the brick-lined graves tell a different story, one of wealth, status, and refined ritual. These tombs were crafted with greater care and skill, built not just as a resting place, but as a home for eternity.
Each of these graves was constructed with mudbrick walls, sometimes even covered with a brick or plaster roof. The inner space often formed a small rectangular chamber, carefully sealed after the burial. Unlike the shallow pit graves, these structures required more labor and materials, a clear indication that those buried within belonged to families of higher social standing or held a special role in society.
Inside these tombs, archaeologists have discovered an impressive array of grave goods: finely painted pottery, cosmetic tools, bronze mirrors, metal blades, ornate jewelry, and even decorated containers for perfumes or ointments. The quality and diversity of these objects suggest that their owners lived lives of privilege and sophistication.
Some of these graves also contained food offerings (animal bones, seeds, or jars filled with remains of ancient meals) left behind as provisions for the journey into the afterlife. The care taken to include these items reveals the same deep spiritual belief that runs through all burials in the Burnt City: that death was not an end, but a continuation.
The position of the bodies in brick-lined graves followed no strict pattern; yet, many were oriented toward the east or southeast, where the sun rises. Some were buried alongside small clay hearths, as if warmth itself were meant to accompany the soul beyond the grave.
To look upon these brick-lined graves is to witness the social layers of Shahr-e Sukhteh, a civilization where even in death, the line between the humble and the powerful was quietly marked in clay and fire.
Collective or Multiple Graves
Among the sands of Shahr-e Sukhteh, some graves hold more than one story. These are the collective or multiple burials, resting places where two or more individuals were laid to rest together, sometimes side by side, sometimes at different times. They are among the most intriguing discoveries of the Burnt City, whispering tales of family bonds, shared destinies, and complex burial rituals.
Many of these graves were first documented by the Italian mission led by Maurizio Tosi (1967–1978), and later confirmed and expanded upon by the Iranian archaeological teams under Dr. Seyyed Mansour Sajjadi. These archaeologists revealed that several of these multi-person graves likely represent family clusters, where members of the same lineage were interred together across generations.
In some graves, husbands and wives were laid side by side, accompanied by shared offerings (pottery, jewelry, and tools) creating a tangible connection that extended beyond life. Others contained parents and children, their bodies positioned carefully to reflect familial bonds. Some graves even show signs of secondary burial, meaning the earth was reopened to add new individuals. This rare practice suggests a continuing relationship between the living and the dead: graves were not abandoned after a single burial but served as sacred family chambers.
Children’s burials within these collective graves reveal another poignant detail. Tiny bodies were often accompanied by small beads, vessels, or toys, placed with care by those who mourned them. Archaeologists note that these burials were ceremonial, not sacrificial, evidence of the deep respect for the youngest members of the community.
Grave goods varied widely, reflecting the social status or personal significance of the individuals buried together. Yet across all collective graves, one truth remains clear: the people of Shahr-e Sukhteh viewed death as a continuation of life’s connections. Families, couples, and kin groups remained bound even in their final resting place.
These collective graves, documented by Tosi and Sajjadi, remind us that in the Burnt City, death was not merely an individual passage. It was a continuation of relationships, a living memory of love and kinship, preserved beneath the same desert sky that once watched over their vibrant city.
Jar Burials
Among the graves of Shahr-e Sukhteh, some of the most delicate and poignant belong to the youngest members of the city: infants and small children. These are the jar burials, resting places where tiny bodies were laid to rest inside large clay vessels, a practice both practical and deeply symbolic.
Archaeologists, including Maurizio Tosi and later Dr. Seyyed Mansour Sajjadi, documented these burials across several sectors of the cemetery. The jars were carefully chosen to fit the small bodies, often placed horizontally or at a slight angle, and sometimes sealed with a flat stone or smaller pot. Despite their small size, these burials were treated with great care, reflecting the city’s belief in honoring every life, no matter how brief.
Grave goods in jar burials were miniature versions of what adults might receive: tiny beads, clay figurines, and occasionally small vessels. Some jars contained traces of red ochre or ashes, likely ritual substances meant to purify and protect the child in the journey beyond life. In some cases, these infant burials were located near the graves of mothers or family members, suggesting an enduring connection even in death.
The jars themselves were not merely containers but symbolic wombs, cradling the child in the earth until it could be reborn, in the belief system of Shahr-e Sukhteh. Even the smallest life was woven into the city’s ritual and spiritual universe.
These tiny graves, quiet and unassuming, tell a story of love, protection, and hope. They reveal a civilization that treated death as a part of life’s cycle, a cycle in which the young were not forgotten, but carefully guided into the afterlife with the same dignity and intention as adults.
Grave Goods and Offerings
Among the silent sands of Shahr-e Sukhteh, the dead are never truly alone. They rest amidst objects carefully chosen to accompany them beyond life, treasures that reveal the city’s spiritual imagination, daily life, and social hierarchies. The cemetery itself becomes a narrative, where each grave tells a story not only of death, but of life, of what mattered most to a people who lived more than five millennia ago.
Even the simplest graves speak volumes. Archaeologists found clay vessels, beads, basic tools, and personal ornaments positioned deliberately beside the deceased, near the head, hands, or feet. These were not mere possessions; they were companions for the journey ahead, items believed to guide, protect, or comfort the soul as it traveled into the unknown. Some graves contained fragments of food, grains, or animal bones, hinting at the belief that nourishment might still be needed in the next life.
As one ascends the hierarchy of burial types, the offerings grow more luxurious and complex. In brick-lined graves, reserved for the wealthy or socially prominent, archaeologists documented a dazzling array of objects. Gold, silver, and bronze jewelry, sometimes set with semi-precious stones like carnelian, turquoise, and lapis lazuli, adorned the deceased. Necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and rings reflected personal style, rank, or symbolic meaning, turning the grave into a miniature display of identity and status. Cosmetic tools and polished bronze mirrors were also common, suggesting that maintaining appearance, or perhaps ritual purification, was an important aspect of afterlife preparation.
Pottery in Shahr-e Sukhteh graves is a world unto itself. Simple clay jars and bowls served practical purposes, while decorated, painted vessels hint at aesthetic sensibilities and symbolic communication. Some containers held grains, seeds, or small portions of food, perhaps sustenance for the dead. Others contained clay replicas of fruits, delicately molded and painted, miniature gifts bridging the living and spiritual worlds.
Among the most extraordinary finds are the artificial eye prosthetics, medical tools, and evidence of surgical knowledge. One remarkable woman was buried with a carefully crafted artificial eye still in place, making it the oldest known prosthetic in human history. Tools for healing and ritual care also accompany certain burials, emphasizing that the city’s inhabitants valued both health and spiritual readiness. Even in death, their skill, care, and ingenuity were evident.
Children’s graves reveal a different tenderness. Miniature offerings (tiny pots, beads, figurines, and toys) were included, scaled to fit their small forms. Their placement reflects love, protection, and hope, showing that the youngest lives were as significant as adult ones. These gestures are both poignant and extraordinary, giving voice to emotions that transcended time.
Animals, too, sometimes appear in the graves (dogs, goats, or other creatures) likely as companions, guardians, or spiritual guides for the deceased. While archaeologists continue to debate their precise significance, their presence highlights a worldview where no one was left alone, and death was a communal and relational experience.
In total, the grave goods of Shahr-e Sukhteh illuminate a civilization that merged practicality with profound symbolism. Every object (whether a humble clay bowl, a polished mirror, or a precious stone bracelet) was a bridge between the living and the dead, a conduit for memory, care, and belief. They show a people deeply conscious of life’s cycles, attentive to the passage of time, and committed to honoring every individual with intention and reverence.
Through these offerings, we glimpse not only the material culture of the Burnt City, but also its values, imagination, and spiritual depth. The cemetery becomes more than a resting place; it is a living archive of human thought, devotion, and artistry, unmatched in its time and remarkable even to us today. In Shahr-e Sukhteh, death was not an end, it was an act of creation, a carefully curated journey, and a testament to the eternal connection between the living and the departed.
Odd and Extraordinary Discoveries
Shahr-e Sukhteh is not only remarkable for its graves and offerings, it is astonishing for the innovations, anomalies, and mysteries uncovered within its cemetery and city. Archaeologists have unearthed evidence of practices and artifacts that seem centuries ahead of their time, challenging our assumptions about life, death, and knowledge in the Bronze Age.
Perhaps the most mind-blowing discovery is the evidence of brain surgery, or trepanation. Archaeologists found skulls with deliberate holes, crafted with precision and showing signs of healing, indicating that the patients survived the operation. This suggests that the people of Shahr-e Sukhteh not only performed surgery but also had knowledge of basic medical care and post-operative healing, an extraordinary achievement for 3200–1800 BCE.
Another astonishing find is the preserved brain of a child, one of the oldest ever discovered in the world. Its state of preservation has provided researchers with a rare glimpse into the neurological knowledge and preservation techniques of the city’s inhabitants. This evidence, along with the sophisticated prosthetics, paints a picture of a society that deeply valued the human body, health, and continuity of life, even after death.
Then there is the famous artificial eye that we mentioned in our blog "Discoveries of Shahr-e Sukhteh", discovered in a woman’s grave. This prosthetic, made of bitumen and small gold threads, is considered the oldest ocular prosthesis in history. Not only does it reveal the city’s technical skill, but it also demonstrates their concern for physical wholeness in life and afterlife.
Archaeologists have also found unusual items buried with the dead: tiny dice, game boards, clay fruit replicas, and miniature tools. Some graves contained ornamental sticks or ritual objects that remain difficult to interpret, while others included animal remains, sometimes whole or partial, hinting at ceremonial or symbolic functions.
Even more bizarre are the secondary burials and graves that appear deliberately disturbed or reorganized, sometimes centuries after the original interment. These suggest ritual maintenance of the dead, or possibly a practice of honoring ancestors repeatedly, reflecting a highly sophisticated belief system in the continuity of life and memory.
Taken together, these discoveries show that Shahr-e Sukhteh was more than a city: it was a center of innovation, ritual, and complex human thought. Surgery, prosthetics, preserved brains, symbolic objects, and sophisticated burial practices reveal a society that blurred the line between life and death, science and ritual, practicality and spirituality.
In Shahr-e Sukhteh, even the oddest discoveries tell a story of a civilization that was curious, inventive, and deeply respectful of human life, a city where the dead were not forgotten, but carefully, even extraordinarily, prepared for the journey beyond.
Animals Buried in Shahr-e Sukhteh
Among the many mysteries of Shahr-e Sukhteh are the animals buried alongside humans, silent companions that hint at rituals, beliefs, and even trade networks of this ancient city. These burials reveal a society that saw life and death as interconnected, not only among humans but with the natural world around them.
Archaeologists discovered graves containing dogs, goats, and other domestic animals, placed carefully beside the deceased. Some were likely companions in life, others perhaps offered as ritual gifts to guide or protect the dead in the afterlife. These animal burials underscore the city’s belief that death was a journey requiring care and connection, not a solitary passage.
Among the most intriguing finds was a monkey, buried in a manner that left the Iranian archaeological team puzzled. At the time, there were very few local experts able to identify such unusual remains. To solve the mystery, a specialist was brought from the West, who confirmed the animal’s identity. Dr. Seyyed Mansour Sajjadi, who witnessed the examination firsthand, recalls, “I saw it live, the Iranians could not understand what it was until the foreign expert identified it.” The presence of this exotic creature raises fascinating questions..
Was it a pet, a ritual offering, or evidence of long-distance trade networks?
Other animal burials remain equally mysterious. Some were partial skeletons, carefully positioned, while others were complete. The selection of species, the positioning beside the deceased, and sometimes the inclusion of symbolic objects suggest that animals had both practical and spiritual significance in Shahr-e Sukhteh.
These findings highlight a city where humans did not live, or die in isolation. Animals were partners, guardians, or symbols, carefully integrated into burial rituals. From dogs providing companionship to a rare monkey whose origin puzzled archaeologists, these burials show the Burnt City’s people valued all forms of life and wove them into their spiritual world.
Legacy and Religious Beliefs of Shahr-e Sukhteh
The graves, offerings, and extraordinary discoveries of Shahr-e Sukhteh are more than archaeological curiosities; they are windows into the spiritual life of one of the earliest urban civilizations in Iran. Beneath the desert sands lies a society that deeply understood life, death, and the continuity between the two, leaving a legacy that resonates even today.
The people of Shahr-e Sukhteh believed in an afterlife, a continuation of existence beyond the grave. This is evident in the careful positioning of bodies according to the sun, the inclusion of grave goods, and the presence of animals and symbolic items in burials. Objects were not simply decorative, mirrors, jewelry, pottery, and even clay fruit were placed deliberately, suggesting the dead would need them for spiritual or practical purposes in another realm.
Religious belief also shaped ritualized treatment of the body. Secondary burials, collective graves, and crypts indicate that the living maintained a connection to their ancestors, honoring family bonds and ensuring spiritual continuity. The inclusion of exotic animals, such as the monkey, and domestic companions like dogs and goats, suggests that the city’s spiritual worldview extended beyond humans, encompassing the natural and supernatural worlds.
Odd discoveries such as prosthetic eyes and evidence of surgery hint at a fusion of science and spirituality. The people of Shahr-e Sukhteh cared for the physical body as part of their belief system, ensuring the deceased were complete and protected in life and afterlife. Even children, buried in jars with miniature offerings, reflect a religion that recognized every life as sacred.
Their legacy extends beyond individual burials. Shahr-e Sukhteh demonstrates that religion in the Bronze Age was integrated into daily life, death, and social identity. Rituals were codified yet adaptable, combining practical knowledge, symbolic gestures, and spiritual beliefs into a cohesive worldview. Archaeologists like Maurizio Tosi and Dr. Seyyed Mansour Sajjadi have emphasized that the city’s cemeteries reveal not just death, but an entire cosmology, a city that linked humanity, nature, and the cosmos in a sacred dialogue.
Today, Shahr-e Sukhteh stands as a testament to a civilization that blended devotion, innovation, and social structure, leaving behind a cultural and spiritual blueprint for the Bronze Age and beyond. Its graves, offerings, and extraordinary artifacts remind us that human beings have long sought to understand life, honor the dead, and bridge the seen and unseen, a legacy that continues to inspire archaeologists, historians, and anyone who gazes upon the silent desert sands.
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Shahr-e Sukhteh is more than a city lost to the sands of time; it is a living testament to human ingenuity, belief, and devotion. Through its graves, offerings, and extraordinary artifacts, we glimpse a civilization that honored life, understood death, and sought to bridge the two. From the simplest pit graves to brick-lined tombs, from the smallest jar burials of children to the most astonishing discoveries of prosthetics, surgery, and exotic animals, every detail reflects a people deeply connected to one another, to nature, and to the cosmos.
The Burnt City teaches us that death was not an end, but a carefully orchestrated continuation of a journey prepared with ritual, care, and imagination. Its legacy endures in the careful placement of grave goods, the precision of burial practices, and the symbolic inclusion of animals, tools, and objects of daily life. In this city, every human and even some animals were given dignity, protection, and remembrance in life and beyond.
For modern eyes, Shahr-e Sukhteh is both a mystery and a mirror. It reminds us that even in the Bronze Age, humans pushed boundaries of knowledge, art, medicine, and spirituality, leaving traces that speak across millennia. Its cemetery is not just a site of archaeology; it is a monument to the universal human desire to understand life, honor the dead, and preserve memory, a legacy that continues to inspire wonder today.
author: The Museum of Time, Asal Mirzaei
15 November 2025, lastest update
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